


Home Is Where the Hologram Is

by imzadi4true, Qapla (sherlockian4evr)



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Artificial Life Forms' Rights, Gen, Going Home, The Moon Landing, Wormhole, holograms, maybe? - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-12
Updated: 2015-10-17
Packaged: 2018-04-25 23:59:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4981804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imzadi4true/pseuds/imzadi4true, https://archiveofourown.org/users/sherlockian4evr/pseuds/Qapla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A tantalizing chance to return to Earth presents itself. Is it too good to be true? Is it even real?</p><p>This was written back in 1998, so that would put us somewhere in season 4.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_Captain's Log, Stardate 512234.6._

_While performing routine sensor sweeps, Ensign Kim discovered faint radio signals. These signals seem to predate the Federation by 192 years. While it is not unusual to pick up signals such as these, it is rare to recognize the words from what appears to be a moment in Earth history. At this time, it is unknown whether these signals are a playback or recorded data or if we are receiving the actual transmission due to some spatial anomaly._

Ensign Kim's voice intruded on Captain Janeway's thoughts. "Captain, I've been able to filter out the extraneous noise from the radio signals that we are picking up. You're not going to believe this."

Rising from her desk in her ready room, Janeway acknowledged Harry's statement, "On my way." As Janeway stepped onto the bridge, she felt a current of excitement passing between crew members. "Report."

Ensign Kim, barely suppressing his excitement, answered simply, "I think you should hear this for yourself. 

Nodding, Janeway said, “On speakers.”

Ensign Kim’s hands flashed over the console. In response, a voice could be heard over the speakers. Their words were overlaid with crackling pops of static, “…Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed…”

Captain Janeway glanced at Harry with a look of puzzlement. “This seems vaguely familiar to me,” she said in response to his expectant expression. Seeing that Harry was about to burst with excitement, Janeway said, “Let’s skip through the guessing games. What conclusion am I supposed to reach?”

“This transmission is indeed from an historic Earth even of the late 20th century, as we had speculated. That’s Commander Neil Armstrong’s transmission to Earth during the first lunar landing.” Harry continued, “Every action and word had been planned ahead of time.” Harry gestured with his hands as he spoke. “They wanted to get it right, because they knew that their words would go down in history.” He paused for breath. “Who would have thought that we would hear their words after so many years and across so much space?”

“Memorizing speeches was never one of my strong suits, Ensign Kim,” Janeway responded. After a few moments of thought, she frowned. “How can this be possible? It’s too great a distance for this signal to have traveled in so little time. In addition, the signal doesn’t seem to have degraded much since its original transmission.”

Janeway noticed as Harry’s face fell. “That’s good work. See if you can track the source of that signal.” Unspoken, the Captain reflected that this just _could_ be their way back to the Alpha Quadrant. Janeway nodded to Chakotay, “I’ll be in my ready room. You have the bridge.”

Kathryn gazed out of her ready room window, sipping a cup of hot coffee. She was lost in thoughts of Earth, an indulgence that she rarely allowed herself. Kathryn closed her eyes briefly, imagining that she could feel the warmth of the sun - not just any sun, but Earth’s own Sol. Just as she added a gentle breeze to her imaginings, her daydreams were disrupted by The Doctor’s anxious voice. “Captain, I must see you immediately.”

Suppressing her annoyance at the intrusion on her thoughts, Janeway responded, “Is it urgent, Doctor?”

“Well, of course, it’s urgent. Why else would I have said ‘immediately’?”

The Captain sighed. The Doctor’s manners could still use a little work. “I’m on my way.”

Captain Janeway stepped through the doors to sickbay. Without a sense of urgency, she said, “You needed to see me, Doctor?”

The Doctor turned towards the Captain. “Is it true,” he asked.

She noticed that the grimace he wore was particularly pronounced today. She couldn’t help herself, a hint of mischief crept into her voice, “Is what true?”

Growing even more agitated, The Doctor replied, “Is there an Echo in here? I’ve heard the rumors. They’re flying around the ship like Tiberian bats.” He paused. When Janeway didn’t respond, his voice rose, along with his eyebrows. “They say that we may have found a way back to the Alpha Quadrant.”

Kathryn took a deep breath before responding. “Doctor, right now, all that I can tell you for sure is that we have received some radio signals that appear to be from Earth. We are investigating as we speak.”

The Doctor rose to his feet and began pacing.

Kathryn was surprised at The Doctor’s reaction. “Is there a problem, Doctor? You seem to be more anxious about this situation than anyone else on Voyager.”

The Doctor stopped his pacing just in front of Kathryn. He seemed to be gathering the courage to ask a question. “Captain,” he paused. “What happens when we make it back. I mean, I’ve gotten used to having the run of the ship, or any place else for that matter.” Again he paused, “What I’m getting at is, will I be shut down once we have arrived safely back at Earth?”

Captain Janeway was slightly taken aback by the question. After a moment’s thought, she reassured The Doctor, “I’m sure that you have nothing to worry about, Doctor. There have been precedents. The rights of artificial life forms have been established before this.”

“Oh, of course,” The Doctor replied sarcastically. “Put me in a cube. I’ll never know the difference. What hologram needs a bit of 29th century technology?” He turned and stalked away. “Go ahead and take it now. Just toss it out the airlock.”

Kathryn couldn’t help herself. She burst out laughing.

Indignant, The Doctor pulled himself up straight. “Oh, I see. Laugh at the hologram. I’m just here for your amusement.”

Kathryn pulled herself together. “No, Doctor. I’m not laughing at your predicament.” She paused, “However, I must admit that your reaction was a bit humorous. I was referring to Lt. Commander Data. Starfleet determined that he was an individual with the same rights as organic life forms. I’m sure that they would think of you in the same way.”

“With all due respect, Captain, I do not believe that you understand my predicament. All of you, including Neelix, most definitely have a future once we make our way to Earth. As for me, my future may find me stored on an insolinear chip in a cybernetics lab.”

The Captain’s communicator picked just that moment to make an insistent chirp. With a brisk motion, Janeway tapped the communicator. “Janeway, go ahead.”

Ensign Kim’s voice came over the comm. “Captain, we have an update on the signal’s source.”

Kathryn responded, “I’m on my way.” She gave The Doctor a level look. “I really don’t think that you have anything to worry about. So try to put your fears to rest.” With that, she turned and left sickbay.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Once more on the bridge, Captain Janeway made her way to her chair, “Report, Ensign.”

Ensign Kim turned to face the captain. “Captain, we have done extensive sensor sweeps and pinpointed the location of the source of the signal. It appears to be coming from a wormhole three lightyears away. At maximum warp, we could reach it in a matter of hours. Furthermore, the wormhole appears to be stable. I have been unable to determine the amount of time for which it will remain open.” Harry paused for a breath, “I will be able to tell you more once we arrive at the wormhole.”

In her crisp voice, Janeway responded, “Very well, Ensign.” Turning to Tom Paris, she gave the order, “Mr. Paris, set a course for the wormhole.”

Even as he set to work, Tom acknowledged her, “Aye, Captain.”

The captain took a deep breath, “Engage.”

_Captain’s Log, supplemental…_

_After studying the wormhole for several hours, we have discovered that it is indeed stable; however, Ensign Kim believes that it will be open for only a short period of time. Our nearest approximation is that the duration of the wormhole is 72 hours, of which roughly 48 have already passed._

As Captain Janeway finished her supplement to the captain’s log, she noticed a change in Tuvok’s demeanor. “Report, Tuvok.”

His cool voice responded, “Captain, you will find this interesting. It seems that the wormhole is stable. It opens approximately every 400 years. I have postulated an explanation for why we are receiving such a clear signal despite the long period of time which has passed since its transmission. It is possible that the signal was caught in the wormhole when it closed. The signal was, therefore, unable to escape. Perhaps it was reflected inside the wormhole. When the time came for the wormhole to reopen, the signal was able to escape with only miniscule degradation. In effect, we are hearing the signal as if we were at the actual moon landing and not 400 years later.”

After a moment of stunned silence, Kathryn asked, “Perhaps we should attempt to research your theory at a later date.” Her tone of voice grew all business as she continued, “In the meantime, there are several questions that I would like to have answered. Is it possible that this wormhole leads to the Sol system? If it does, what are our chances of taking the Voyager through and exiting in one piece? Find out for me.” Kathryn paused again. When she resumed, she had her characteristic half smile in place. “I am for giving it a try if at all possible.”

In a characteristically Vulcan tone of voice, Tuvok replied, “I believe that our chances are extremely good. So good, in fact, that I will not bother to bore you with the odds.” With that said, he merely cocked an eyebrow.

“Well, then,” said Captain Janeway, “time is wasting.”

Quickly, the captain activated the ship wide intercom. “All hands, this is the captain. We are about to enter a wormhole which we speculate will either take us home or close enough to it that we can make it back in months rather than years. At this time, I want the entire crew to make the preparations to get this ship ready for the next leg of our journey. I want to be ready to enter the wormhole by 1400 hours. Get to it.”

1400 hours had come and gone. With final preparations finished, Captain Janeway prepared her crew to enter the wormhole. She called to get an update from engineering. “B’Elanna, what is the condition of the ship’s main systems?”

From the intercom came the excited voice of Lt. Torres, “Captain, the warp core is at 100% efficiency, the structural integrity field is stable and my excitement level has shoot far past its usual norm.” There was a pause, then B’Ellanna’s voice resumed, this time tinged with a quiet wonder, “I never thought I would be so glad to get back to Earth. I didn’t realize how much it meant to me.”

Captain Janeway replied, “Yes, being far from home and unable to return makes you reevaluate your feelings. You learn things about yourself that you never knew before.” Janeway smiled and reflected on the changes that had taken place in B’Ellanna and the rest of her crew. They had grown together on this voyage. “Thank you, B’Ellanna. That will be all.”

Satisfied that the ship was operating at peak efficiency, Captain Janeway called The Doctor in sickbay. Her voice called to The Doctor crisply, “Janeway to sickbay.”

“Sickbay,” came the Doctor’s reply.

“Yes, Doctor. I wanted to check on the status of sickbay. I don’t expect any casualties as we pass through the wormhole; however, I would rather be safe than sorry.” Janeway waited for The Doctor’s response. It was not long in coming.

The Doctor replied with just a trace of smugness in his voice, “As usual, sickbay is in top condition. I am prepared for any conceivable emergency.” A slight pause was followed by, “Captain, are you certain that I have nothing to worry about?”

Kathryn couldn’t help smiling at The Doctor’s worried question. “Yes, Doctor. I am quite certain. Our entire crew will stand beside you. Janeway out.”

The captain addressed the crew, “This is the moment that we have been anticipating. All hands prepare to enter the wormhole. Go to red alert.”

The captain glanced around the bridge. All of the preliminaries were out of the way and everyone was at their stations. Taking a deep breath, Janeway gave the order, “Mr. Paris, take us in.”

Every crewmember on the bridge took a deep breath as the Voyager plunged into the incandescence of the wormhole. Its spiraling coils of luminescence captivated every individual that saw it on the view screen. As the wormhole neared, then engulfed the Voyager, turbulence wracked the ship.

Raising her voice to be heard over the rattling of Voyager, Captain Janeway gave the order, “Reduce speed to three quarters impulse power.”

The shaking subsided considerably. As the ship made its way through the wormhole, the captain looked around the bridge of her ship, at all of the faces of her family and felt she was nearing the end of some horrible dream. It hardly seemed real that such a wormhole could exist. It would end their journey many decades before they had anticipated, even in their most optimistic estimations. She could barely keep from thinking of the old cliché, “If it seems too good to be true, then it probably is.” No matter, she still had her fingers crossed.

There was a moment of eerie silence as the Voyager slipped free of the wormhole. The Captain and the crew could hardly believe what they saw. Before them was the Sol system. Janeway quickly ordered, “All stop.”


End file.
